Fifth in the nation!

Whew! It's Derby Day, and we had one last dayof showing, which turned out really successfully. We had two final team competitions today with Shelby competing in Team Open Over Fences and Taylor competing in Team Open on the Flat. Shelby's class went first and she d rew a horse from Goucher college named Ghandi. Shelby put in a solid trip, earning a 68 and placing  10th.

Results:
1st) #129, Kelse Banham of SCAD.  Kelse scored an 86 aboard Clifford of Cornell university.
2nd) #159, Ali Cibon of university of Kentcky. Ali scored an 84 aboard Twister of Cazenoia College
3rd) #409, Lindsay Sceats of Mt. Holyoke university. Lindsay scored an 80 aboard Best Boy of Skidmore university
4th) #197, Flavia D'urso of Skidmore College. Flavia scored a 79 aboard Grady of Cazenovia College
5th) #287, Carolyn Kelsey of university of New Hampshire. Carolyn scored a 78 aobard Tetirs of West Point
6th) #339, Ashley Miller of Virginia Intermont College. Ashley scored a 77 aboard Bing of St. Lawrence
7th) #276, Robert Jacobs of St. Andrews Presbyterian College. Robert scored a 75 aboard King of Centenary
8th) #430, Suzanne Snyder of St. Lawrence College. Suzanne scored a 77 aboard Rocky of Hollins university
9th) #327, Kari McArthur of Purdue university. Kari scored a 70 aboard Sampson of Virginia Intermont
10th) #235, Shelby Goodman of Bridgewater College. Shelby scored a 68 aboard Ghandi of Goucher

The Cacchione Cup testing phase went next, with the top three being tested. Robert Jacobs of St. Andrews went first aboard Amatelli of Skidmore. Robert had a smooth trip overall, with a small struggle at the trot jump,and remained in third. Testing second was Shelby Wakeman of NYu aboard Bing of St. Lawrence. She too  had a nice trip, with two small bobbles through lead changes. Testing last, in first place, was Marissa Cohen of Centenary College aboard Best Boy of Skidmore College. Marissa put down a nearly perfect  trip and held on to the lead, becoming the 2011 winner  of the  Cacchione Cup.

After the jumps were removed from the ring, the western horses had a schooling break, and then the Open Individual Reining went. There were 12 riders, and  after the first 6 went, they had to drag the ring  again, so it took FOREVER! But the good ones were really exciting to watch, between the whooping and hollering of the crowds, and the dirt and manes flying as the horses galloped and spun and slid. I'd really like to  go  to an outdoor rodeo now, so I could take better pictures.

After the  reining class, the  Team Open Flat Class went. Taylor Rose drew Hollins university's Rocky. After an initial flat phase, the judge decided to test the top 10 without their stirrups. After a  minor struggle  to get their stirrups crossed, the riders took the rail again and were asked for a rising trot, sitting trot, canter, and counter canter. Taylor finished the class in 7th place.

Results:
1st) #241, Kathryn Haley of Centenary College aboard Clifford
2nd) #218, Paul Frederick of SCAD aboard Carter
3rd) #430, Suzanne Snyder of  St. Lawrence aboard Lion Heart
4th)  #339, Ashley Miller of Virginia Intermont aboard Amatelli
5th) #313, Lexie Lohrer of Mt. Holyoke aboard Monty
6th) #422, Madison Smith of Miami university of Ohio aboard Best Boy
7th) #398, Taylor Rose of Bridgewater College aboard Rocky
8th) #139, Jennifer Burke of university of Colorado-Boulder  aboard Lance
9th) #126, Audrey Bolte of  St. Andrews aboard Toby
10th) #147., Kelly Campbell of Skidmore College aboard Templeton

That concluded the team portion and led in to the final hunt seat class of the horse show, Alumni Equitation on the Flat. During the start, someone apparently fell off and the whole class had to be started over again.We missed this excitement as we had gone outside to take some team pictures.
Here are the results:

1st) #241, Samantha Gunnison of university of Georgia
2nd) #316, Tara Lynch of university of Connecticut
3rd) #411,  Jessica Schatz  of university of Pennsylvania
4th) #377, Ashton Phillips of Virginia Intermont
5th) #410, Katie Schaaf of Tufts university
6th) #298, Amy Krititsky of university of Connecticut
7th) #320, Kelley Mallery of Hollins university
8th) #405, Lauren Sappenfield of Purdue university
9th) #450, Julia Turner of university of South California
10th) #131, Jessica Bower of  California State Polytechnical university Pomona

This concluded the Hunt Seat portion of the show. The teams paraded through the ring along with any horses who were brought to the show. After a few  individual  awards were presented, the team awards were announced. Bridgewater finished in a tie  for 5th place. Not bad for the program's first time at Nationals!

Well, it's been a great time  being in Kentucky, and while  I've enjoyed the stay, I'm eager to get back to Virginia and start Summer Break!

Thanks for supporting the BC riding team, it's been a great year!

What a Day!!

Wow, everybody, it was an exciting day at the Kentucky Horse Park! We again started the day with the National Anthem, this time an instrumental rendition. I find that I prefer these versions to sung versions, but to each their own. I failed to mention yesterday, but the judges for the horse show are Bob Crandall and Kim Dorffman. 

Oh, and by the way, my "u" key does not work, so I have to paste a "u" in anywhere one is required, so that's why none of the 'universities' are capitalized.

The day started with the Alumni Over Fences, which we of course did not have anyone in, but here are the results for anyone interested. 
1st: #320, Kelley Mallery of Hollins university. Kelley scored an 82 aboard Darina of Virginia Intermont
2nd: #446, Sarah Thompson of the university of Richmond. Sarah scored an 80 aboard Footing of Sewanee: the university of the South
3rd: #178, Rebecca Danz of SuNY Albany. Rebecca scored a 77 aboard Karat of Centenary university
4th: #410, Katie Schaaf of Tufts university. Katie scored a 75 on a re-ride
5th: #459, Kristen Walters of Mississippi State university. Kristen scored a 74 aboard Gryffindor of Skidmore College
6th: #163, Chrystal Coffelt-Wood of Kutztown university. Chrystal scored a 73 aboard Twister of Cazenovia
7th: #114, Sarah Bechtel of Lebanon Valley College. Sarah scored a 72 aboard Tallie of Taylor university
8th: #316, Tara Lynch of university of Connecticut. Tara scored a 70 aboard Wes of Cazenovia
9th: #237, Erica Green of Washington and Jefferson College. Erica scored a 69 aboard Grady Square Pants of Cazenovia
10th: #241, Samantha Gunnison of university of Georgia. Samantha scored a 68.5 aboard Taz of Sewanee: The university of the South

The Team Intermediate Equitation Over Fences went next. Taylor Rose rode 14th out of 16, which made us all sit biting our nails through most of the class. She drew Carter, a super gray gelding from I believe Centenary College. I managed to not write his school down anywhere in my notes, so I'm not sure. She had a beautiful trip, and scored a 79 to place fifth in the class, earning Bridgewater 2 more points. Taylor has another ride tomorrow, in the Team Open Equitation on the Flat.
Complete Results:
1st: #292, Natasha Klingenstein of Centenary College. Natasha scored an 84 aboard Bing from St. Lawrence university
2nd: #326, Julia Mazzarella of Skidmore College. Julia scored an 83 aboard Darina of Virginia Intermont
3rd: #310, Jessie Lewis of St. Lawrence university. Jessie scored an 81 aboard Karat of Centenary College
4th: #369, Lauren Patterson of university of Kentucky. Lauren scored an 80 aboard Pandor of Centenary College
5th: #398, Taylor Rose of Bridgewater College. Taylor scored a 79 aboard Carter of Centenary College (?)
6th: #467, Whitney Wickes of university of Colorado, Boulder. Whitney scored a 78 aboard Gryffindor of Skidmore College
7th: #407, Catherine Sarosy of Miami university of Ohio. Catherine scored a 76 aboard Toby of Skidmore College
8th: #107, Jennifer Atkinson of Purdue university. Jennifer scored a 75 aboard Monty of Virginia Intermont
9th: #127, Hayley Bolton of Savannah College of Art and Design. Hayley scored a 74.5 aboard Tres Corona on a re-ride. Tres Corona is from Hollins university
10th:  #171, Kali Cram of St. Andrews Presbyterian College. Kali scored a 74 aboard Leroy of Skidmore College

The Cacchione Cup Over Fences portion took place next. We stayed long enough to watch Tamara Morse, of Washington and Lee, ride King to a score of 76. Then we decided to walk over to the museum part of the horse park. It was an incredible experience, and I took tons of pictures! The museum started us with the evolution of the horse, and took us through the evolution of tack, carriages, riding, etc. We saw Draft Breeds, Thoroughbreds, Arabians, and others. The Arabian section had a large variety of interactive games, including one where you created a horse and then met him or her at different "oasis-es" (yes, that's a made up word) in order to learn about what he ate and drank and where he slept during his travelings across the desert. 

There was also a section on horse books for children, where we revisited the Black Stallion series, and one of my favorites, Little Black. They were a series about a boy and his little black pony, and all of the adventures that the two of them went on. I remember one where the boy fell through the ice, and the pony had to rescue one, as well as one where Little Black ran off to join the circus because he thought the boy didn't love him anymore.

After the museum, we OF COuRSE, hit the gift shop, where I think everyone found a little something. Everyone's getting ready for DERBY DAY tomorrow, and there was an assortment of hats, party supplies, posters, hats, t-shirts, and more. 

Then we took a walk around the grounds, and walked through the farrier station and the tack store.  Allyson rode on the horse simulator, however the cantering one was out of order, so she was only able to walk and trot.

Allyson, Ashley and I lost track of the group, and wound up at the Champions barn, just in time for the “Parade of Champions,” where the four main retirees are shown to the crowd, and their accomplishments are talked about. Mr. Muscleman, a retired Standardbred trotter was first. We were told that he was 17hh, but we were a little skeptical of that. We got to see some of his more famous races, too.

The second horse to come out was the one that I know I had been waiting to see. “The Gutsy Gelding Funny Cide” made his appearance by trotting into the holding area and boldly looking out at the crowd. Funny Cide is the only New York bred horse to win the Kentucky Derby, and he was the first gelding to win it since Clyde Van Dusen in 1929. I’m sure most of you can remember the call coming down the stretch of the Kentucky Derby, as he shocked almost everyone by winning in the tenth fastest Derby time over the favorite Empire Maker. He then was a runaway in the Preakness, winning uncontested by 9 ¾ lengths, the second largest margin in Preakness history. Funny Cide did not complete the Triple Crown, as a variety of factors foiled his bid in the Belmont Stakes. Seeing this one horse absolutely made my day. The call of his Derby and Secretariat’s Belmont Stakes (“Secretariat is moving like a tremendous machine!”) both give me goose bumps whenever I hear them.

The next horse out was Da Hoss, a champion on the grass. Da Hoss’ major accomplishment comes from winning 2 Breeders’ Cup Classic races, in non-consecutive years. He is the only horse to have done this. His hiatus came from severe leg injuries, which you can still see the evidence of in his legs today.

The final horse to be presented was the famous Cigar. This little horse won sixteen straight starts, including the first Dubai World Cup. Watching the videos of his races on the screen just made me appreciate good horse racing that much more. It’s incredible when they have that much drive and fight in them to look another horse in the eye and then deny them from taking the lead. Cigar is still full of vigor, as he continuously tried to bite the lead shank and played in the holding area. Seeing these four horses was an incredible experience. It was so nice to see how happy they are, fat and barefoot in their retirement.

We walked back to the Alltech Arena after that and watched the second reining class, as well as the Western equivalent of the Cacchione Cup, which involved riding on the rail and then a horsemanship pattern, and then they will ride a reining pattern tomorrow. I found the western stuff so intriguing, and I guess it’s probably the same both ways, but I was just so curious about how it’s judged, or how they make the horses go sooooo slow.

The Cacchione Cup flatted after that western portion, with the top three being tested tomorrow. Tamara Morse finished 4^th after moving up 8 places in the flat portion.

We then moved on to the rest of the Hunt Seat classes for the day. We had riders in all three classes, so we were pretty busy. Corrie Fittz started us off with a super ride in the Individual Walk/Trot class aboard Hollins university’s Glen Heirloom, to earn third place. I was not able to keep up with all of the horses this time, so I apologize for missing some!

Final results:

1^st:  #240 Jenna Gunnell of St. Lawrence university

2^nd: #356 Paul Nichols of Lynchburg College, aboard Sport

3^rd: #213 Corrie Fittz of Bridgewater College, aboard Glen Heirloom

4^th: #451 Emily Turville of Miami university of Ohio

5^th: #220 Katelyn French of university of Wyoming, aboard Darina

6^th: #375 Sharon Percival of College of Charleston, aboard Wes

7^th: #158 Kaitlyn Christie of university of Victoria, aboard Rascal

8^th: #477 Karolina Woroniecka of Brown university, aboard Cody

9^th: #463 Belinda Wenke of Mount Holyoke College, aboard City Lights

10^th: #315 Kristie Lutz of Southeast Missouri State university, aboard Louie

We then barely had time to breath before we put Allyson Gallamore right on Bella, of Hollins university, and into the ring for the Team Walk/Trot class. Allyson gave Bella a beautiful ride, proving to everyone that all of the hard work and long hours she and Ashley have spent on the lunge line without stirrups has paid off. Allyson earned Reserve Champion, and five points for Bridgewater.

Results:

1^st:  #206, Paulina Erni of Mount Holyoke College

2^nd: #222, Allyson Gallamore of Bridgewater College, aboard Bella

3^rd: #184, Elise DeBuysser of Stanford university, aboard Lance

4^th: #416, Taylor Scott of Virginia Intermont, aboard Footing

5^th: #437, Anna Stoebel of university of New Hampshire, aboard Prairie Bell

6^th: #175, Cecilia Culp of Skidmore College, aboard Cody

7^th: #312, Blake Liljestrand of St. Andrews Presbyterian College, aboard City Lights

8^th:  #414, Thomas Schoen of Miami university of Ohio

9^th: #113, Pauline Baumgartner of Savannah College of Art and Design, aboard Sport

10^th: #203, Milissa Eischens of university of Wisconsin-Madison

It was right back into the ring for the last Hunt Seat class of the day, Team Walk/Trot/Canter. Geordon Duncan rode for Bridgewater College aboard Owen, the same horse that Lindsey Goode drew for her class. Geordon rode very well and placed 10^th, although we all feel that she should have placed higher.

Results:

1^st: #340, Sophie Miller of St. Lawrence university

2^nd: #353, Victoria Neff of Skidmore College

3^rd: #208, Kayla Felstedt of Centenary College

4^th: #374, Jennifer Peotter of university of Wisconsin-Madison

5^th:  #423, Claire Smedley of university of Kentucky

6^th: #277, Sarah Jacobson of Stanford university

7^th:  #478, Miranda Wright of St. Andrews Presbyterian College

8^th: #445, Kaelee Thompson of Savannah College of Art and Design

9^th: #288, Megan Kelty of Virginia Intermont College

10^th: #195, Geordon Duncan of Bridgewater College

After the classes ended, we returned to the hotel, and then went to a Mexican restaurant for dinner, since Beth has been talking non-stop about it for the past two days! I know everyone is tired now, but we have one more day of showing, and we’re really looking forward to trying our hardest. Tomorrow, Shelby rides in Team Open over Fences, and Taylor rides in Team Open on the Flat, so we have two more chances to earn more points. Currently, Centenary College seems to be running away with the competition. I believe when we looked at the points this afternoon, Bridgewater was in fourth. Not too bad, guys! I know we’ll win two more good ribbons tomorrow, and hopefully move up in the placings.

Again, pictures are coming! I have yesterday’s sorted, and will post them momentarily.

Day One Complete

Hi everyone, and happy Cinco de Mayo!

It's been a long day here in Kentucky, especially for the flat riders who got up at 5:00 to go watch the horses school this morning. I'd say it was a pretty successful day overall. 


We started off the morning with wishing Lauren Casey happy birthday!! She turned 20 today, and I KNOW  everyone wished her a happy birthday... 


The horse show opened up with the singing of the national anthem, which was actually quite well done. I know I got goose bumps listening to it, just as I do every time, but especially in light of recent events. 

Chelsea started things off for us with a great trip in her individual intermediate equitation over fences. She drew a horse named King from Centenary College. She scored a 78 on her trip and finished in fifth place. They saw 16 in the class, and tested the top two with a shortened course on the horse that they originially rode.
Complete results for that class are:
1st: #488, Casey Zuraitis of St. Lawrence university, scoring an 86 aboard Carter
2nd: #216, Taylor Franchi of Boston university,  scoring an 85 aboard Clifford
3rd: #421, Alicia Shankle of Virginia Tech, scoring an 84 aboard Monty
4th:  #373, Teal  Pedersen of Morrisville State College, scoring an 80 aboard Pandor
5th: #247, Chelsea Hames of Bridgewater College, scoring a 78 aboard King
6th: #465, Samantha Whitley of Centenary College, scoring a 76 aboard Toby
7th: #394, Julie Roberts of university of Florida, scoring a 74 aboard a re-ride horse whose name wasn't announced.
8th:  #174, Stephanie Crecelius of Truman State university, scoring a 72 aboard Rocky
9th: #438, Kristina Styslinger of North Carolina State university, scoring a 71 aboard Ghandi
10th: #365, Morgan Omdal of  West  Virginia university, scoring a 70 aboard Stuart

The second class of the day was Individual Open Equitation Over Fences. This was a very tough class, with  the topscore being an 84. Shelby received 10th place, scoring a 76 aboard Henry from Virginia Intermont. The top four tested, switching horses and then riding the entire course again.    
Complete Results:
1st: #159, Ali Cibon of university of Kentucky, scoring an 84 aboard Ghandi  in the first round. She tested aboard Sampson and stayed in first.
2nd: #129, Kelse Bonham of Savannah College of Art and Design, scoring an 82 aboard Toby in the first round. She tested on King in the second round, and moved up to second.
3rd: #325, Lindsay Maxwell of Sewanee: The university of the South, scoring an 83 aboard Sampson in the first round. She tested on Ghandi and dropped to third.
4th: #152, Randi Cashman of Centenary College, scoring an 81 aboard King in the first round. Randi tested on Toby and stayed in fourth.
5th: #281, Brittany Johnson of university of Connecticut, scoring an 80 aboard Carter
6th: #461, Julie Weisz of Gettysburg College, scoring a 78 aboard Leroy
7th: #154, Lauren Cechini of Ohio State university, scoring a 77.5 aboard Bing
8th:  # 372, Camille Pease of university of California, Los Angelas, scoring a 77 aboard Sanantonio
9th:  # 197, Flavia D'urso of Skidmore College, scoring a 76.5 aboard Almost Seven
10th: #235, Shelby Goodman of Bridgewater College, scoring a 76 aboard Henry

We then moved on to the Individual Novice Over Fences. We didn't have anyone in this class, but our Region was represented by Sarah Jarosinski of Hollins university. She had a beautiful trip aboard Ghandi, and scored an 85. That score remained the top score through almost the entire class, being beaten by only one other. Congrats, Sarah!

1st: #168, Julie Connors of Centenary College, scoring an 86 aboard Henry
2nd: #279, Sarah Jarosinski of Hollins university, scoring an 85 aboard Ghandi
3rd: #433, Sarah Spangenberg of Dartmouth  College, scoring an 82 aboard Monty
4th: #285, Kristina Keilty of  The university of Guelph, scoring an 80 aboard Leroy
5th: #266, Karlyn Hobbs of university of Colorado, Boulder, scoring a 79 aboard Oscar
6th: #378, Michelle Piccione of university of Wisconsin-Madison, scoring a 78 aboard Almost Seven
7th: #328, Mary McClintock of Dickinson College, scoring a 77 aboard Daria
8th: #209, Devon Felts of Colby Community College, scoring a 76 aboard Tetris 
9th: #453, Catherine Vaughan of James Madison university, scoring a 75.5 aboard Grady
10th: #142, Diana Cabral of Stonehill College, scoring a 75 aboard City Lights

Tara Deckel rode next for Bridgewater in the Team Novice Equitation over Fences. She did a good job with a tricky horse, and scored a 71 with Wes, finishing just out of the ribbons in 11th place. The first two tested aboard their original horses over a shortened course.

1st: #293, Chelsea Koerper of Delaware Valley College, scoring an 82 in the first round aboard Grady, moving up to first after the test.
2nd: #468, Brendan Williams of Centanary College, scoring an 83 in the first round aboard Pandor, moving to second after the  test
3rd: #101 Morgan Abbett of Stanford university, scoring an 80 aboard Griffyndor 
4th: #227 Sally Gibb of  Mount Holyoke College, scoring a 78 aboard Henry
5th: #172 Sami Cram of St. Andrews Presbyterian College, scoring a 77
6th: #236 Brianna Goodnow of university of Kentucky, scoring a 76 aboard Airborne
7th: #449 Sarah Truchon of university of New Hampshire, scoring a 75 aboard Oscar
8th:  #128 Kristin Bonacum of Purdue university, scoring a 74 aboard Tetris
9th:  #391 Amy Reynolds of university of Wisconsin-Madison, scoring a 73 aboard Ghandi
10th: #192 Allison Drost of Miami university of Ohio, scoring a 72 aboard Daria

The next class was the Individual Intermediate Hunter Seat Equitation on the Flat. Centenary took both first and second place in this class. Bridgewater didn't have anyone riding in this class, but results are as follows:
1st: #176 Brittany Cunnane of Centenary College, aboard Templeton       
2nd: #465 Samantha Whitley of Centenary College, aboard Lance
3rd: #384 Kelly Purchase of Boston university, aboard Lion Heart
4th: #369 Lauren Patterson of university of Kentucky, aboard Sampson
5th: #441 Margaret Swanson of Mount Holyoke College, aboard Grady
6th: #105 McKenzie Armour of  College of Charleston, aboard Carter
7th: #359 Sam Normandeau of Fairfield university, aboard Footing
8th: #306 Elizabeth Leduc of Berry College, aboard Rocky
9th: #117 Angela Bernier of university of Connecticut, aboard Best Boy
10th: #107 Jennifer Atkinson of Perdue university, aboard Oscar

We then moved on to the Individual Novice Flat, which saw Lauren Casey competing for Bridgewater. She drew a mare from Virginia Intermont named Daria, and finished 9th. I appologize, I did not get any of the horse's names from this class
1st: #291 Hanae Kimura of Skidmore College
2nd: #485 Carly Ziegler of George Mason university 
3rd: #433 Sarah Spangenberg of Dartmouth College
4th: #262 Brittany Hess of Michigan State university
5th: #413 Amy Schneider of Arizona State university
6th: #432 Kimberly Spackman of Dickinson College
7th: #301 Jaslyn Law of Stanford university
8th: #323 Felicia Matsinger of Virginia Intermont College
9th: #151 Lauren Casey of Bridgewater College
10th: #278 Sarah Jadwin of Ohio State university

The Team Novice Flat went next. Lindsey Goode rode for Bridgewater in this class, aboard Owen, a great big black horse. She  had a beautiful ride and finished third, earning four points for Bridgewater.
1st: #330 Alexandra McGuire of Skidmore College
2nd: 292 Natasha Klingenstein of Centenary College
3rd: #234 Lindsey Goode of Bridgewater College
4th: #144 Jennifer Callahan ofSt. Andrews Presbyterian College
5th: #317 Madison MacLeod of Miami university of Ohio
6th: #271 Emily Hunt of Purdue university
7th: #386 Ashleigh Ramey of Virginia Intermont College
8th: #236 Brianna Goodnow of university of Kentucky
9th: #488 Casey Zuraitis of St. Lawrence university
10th: #232 Valerie Goeman of university of New Hampshire

We had a break of two classes before our next rider. Those results are  as follows:
Individual Walk/Trot/Canter
1st: #402 MacKenzie Russell of College of Charleston 
2nd: #400 Amanda Ross of Mount Holyoke College
3rd: #194 Anastasia Duble of Ohio universtiy
4th: #307 Ashley Legg of Cazenovia College
5th: #109 Michelle Auclair of university of Massachusetts at Amherst
6th: #187 Shilpa Deshpande of universtiy of Delaware
7th: #426 Deborah Smith of Centenary College
8th: #346 Isabel Moore of universtiy of Mary Washington
9th: #380 Ellison  Poston of Lander university
10th: #145 Alexandra Calvert of Xavier universtiy

Open Individual Flat
1st: #245 Kathryn Haley of Centenary College aboard Lance
2nd: #313 Lexie Lohrer of Mount Holyoke College aboard Amateli
3rd:  #336 Paige Messick of Virginia Tech aboard Leroy
4th: #281 Brittany Johnson of university of Connecticut aboard Templeton
5th: #259 Brittany Henson of university of  Nevada aboard Lion Heart
6th: #249 Ellen Hansen of Villanova university aboard Beckham
7th: #132 Amory Brandt of Goucher College aboard Footing
8th: #444 Katie Taylor of uinversity of Central Florida aboard Rocky
9th: #273 Kathryn Hurrell of uinversity ofWyoming aboard Clifford
10th: #456 Emily Walker of university of Minnesota - Twin Cities aboard Sampson

Finally, the last class of the day arrived. Lauren Casey rode for Bridgewater College in the Team Intermediate on the Flat. She drew the horse she wanted, Monty from Virginia Intermont, and gave him a great ride to end up in eigth place against very tough competition.
1st: #294 Jordan Koivu of St. Lawrence university
2nd: #368 Jessica Pabst of Centenary College aboard Best Boy
3rd: #261 Kelly Herdman of Miami university of Ohio aboard Footing
4th: #172 Sami Cram of St. Andrews Presbyterian College aboard Clifford
5th: #399 Shannon Roska of university ofWisconsin-Madison aboard Lance
6th: #283 Chelsea Jones of Skidmore College aboard Owen
7th: #304 Kristin Lawrence of Delaware Valley College aboard Leroy
8th: #151 Lauren Casey of Bridgewater College aboard Monty
9th: #136 Taylor Brown of Savannah College of Art and Design aboard Lion Heart
10th: #280 Kyle Jefferson of Perdue university 

After all of the classes were over, we went to the uSHJA building for a sponsored dinner of Bar-b-que, Hamburgers, Eggplant Lasagna, and other things. While we waited for dinner, we explored the barns on the horse park. Most of the horses were out or sleeping, so I'd really like to go back during the day sometime. It's such a beautiful facility. 

Tomorrow we look forward to several more classes, as well as getting to watch some of the western classes go in between the Over Fences and Flat portion of the English show schedule. 

I will add pictures to this post once I can sort through them a little bit!

Thanks for reading, and keep on supporting the riders!                         
 

It's cold!

Hey everyone! After hours and hours of watching horses school, we are back at the hotel. It's still super cold outside, and unfortunately not much better inside the Alltech Arena where the show will be held.

For those of you who haven't been here, the horse park is beautiful.We didn't get to see much of it today, but what we did see as we were driving in was gorgeous; green as could be, with rolling hills and long stretches of white fencing. It's obviously rained a lot here, as many of the paddocks had lakes in them, and the stream that runs through the park was full almost to flooding, and moving rather swiftly.

The Alltech Arena is similar to the Coliseum at the Virginia Horse Center, only... nicer. It's larger, with so many more seats, but it has the similar set up with the concourse which you can walk around and buy many different things. Der-Dau has a booth, as well as many IHSA souvenir stands. I'm sure there will be even more to see tomorrow - everyone was just getting set up today.

Each of the riders got sweet backpacks, with all sorts of goodies inside - water bottles, shoe shining kits, socks, magazines, more chap stick, hats, etc.

We're here! All the riders... minus Corrie. Where did Corrie go while this was being taken? We'll have to take another one.

So we watched horse after horse after horse jump around the course, with many of them schooling around several times. The horses were actually being evaluated to see which ones the show will end up using. There were horses from all over; Sewanee, Virginia Intermont, Centenary, and Hollins all brought several, as well as a couple other schools or private owners. Hollins must have brought a whole truck-full; we recognized a lot of their horses as ones that our riders have ridden in the past or who they brought over for Zones. After the horses jumped, we watched a bunch of them flat. And when I say a bunch, I mean a whole bunch. Huge groups of horses. We all sat there and picked out which horses we thought each of our riders should pull :-) Now we just have to get Geo to work  her magic to make sure they pull those horses!

Watching flat horses

That's all for right now! Everyone decided we were very tired, so we're skipping the museum today, but we're going to try and go to it tomorrow in the afternoon, once everyone is done showing. Oh! They have western events here too, and we're all really excited to get to watch some of the open reining events! It should be fun.

Look out Kentucky, here we are!

Hi everyone! 

I know everyone on the equestrian team (as well as some people who aren't!) wants to be kept up to date on what's going on in Kentucky for IHSA Nationals.

We arrived in Kentucky just after midnight, with the welcoming site of... rain. More rain. And cold. Haven't we seen enough of this?

It's Morning Number 1 right now, and the jump riders have already left the hotel to watch the horses school. I didn't really want to get up that early, soooo... I'll be going with the flat riders in about half an hour. I guess we're going to watch the horses school for the first part of the day, and then... I don't know. I'm hoping we get to explore the horse park some, but who knows! :)

The plan for this is to get pictures and videos posted every night, as well as an updated blog with results of how everyone did, and what went on during the day. I DON'T have a fancy phone with internet, so if you are looking for updates during the day, try texting someone. But hopefully this will get updated every night. 

We're really excited to be here, and as Sarah said, we definitely belong. We wish everyone could be here to support our riders, but those damn exams are just in the way... But we know you will be supporting the team and cheering them on from home, too. :)